Time Travel: Unveiling the Science and Stories

Time travel is a concept that has captivated the human imagination for centuries. From H.G. Wells’ classic novel “The Time Machine”, to the blockbuster movie, Back to the Future, time travel has been a traditional topic for discussion, debate, and fantasy. But what if time travel could actually become a reality? In this article, we will explore the science behind time traveling and some stories related to it as well. So, buckle up, and let’s start the journey through the fourth dimension of endless possibilities!

What is Time Travel?

Are you also wondering like me what your future wife/husband will look like? If yes, then you have a valid reason to travel in time.

Have you ever considered the fact that we are already experiencing time travel? We get older as the seconds, minutes, and hours pass by. But the real question is, can we travel ahead of time or slow down time? Let’s understand that on the basis of Albert Einstein’s theory.

We can travel time either by traveling in the future or by traveling in the past. People used to believe that the flow of time is constant. That implies that wherever you are—on Earth, in space, on a different planet, close to the sun, close to a black hole, etc. It doesn’t matter. According to Isaac Newton, time will flow at the same rate no matter where you are or at what speed you are. But, according to Einstein, there are specific situations when the pace of flow of time can vary. Einstein’s time travel formula states that there are two circumstances in which time travel is possible.

Theory of time dilation

1) By traveling at a very high speed

If you are flying at a high velocity, time will appear to move slower for you than for those on the ground. Time is running the same for you but slower relative to others on the ground. This is because time is relative and is affected by the speed at which you are moving. This means that your clock is running slower with respect to other people’s clocks, then when you return to the ground, you will have traveled less in time than the others have, even though you arrived at the same moment as them. In other words, you have traveled into the future. It’s because you are behind the others according to your time but arrived at the same moment as them. 

Theory or Fact?

This theory is not just a theory anymore. It was tested in 1971 in Hafele and Keating experiment.

The scientists used two atomic clocks to measure the time precisely. They placed one on an airplane and the other one on the ground. It was noticed that the clock which traveled in the airplane got comparatively few seconds slower than the clock which stayed stationary on the ground even though they were at the same time before flying, which is hard to believe. That means we can leave time behind.

It is believed that if we could reach the speed of light (distance traveled by light in one year), then we can travel through time into the future. This is because the faster we go, the slower the time passes. It is believed that if you travel to space at the speed of light and return back after a few days, people around you will grow old depending on the number of days you spend in space at the speed of light. That means speed, space, and time are linked.

Let’s take another example: GPS satellites revolve around our Earth. Does that mean their clocks also slow down due to the speed at which they travel? Yes, this is indeed the case. If not adjusted by scientists, the speed of time on the satellites will be slower than that on Earth.

2) By gravitational force

Imagine there is a fabric of cloth (fabric of space and time) and there are balls on it (astronomical objects, planets, sun, etc). Imagine that the cloth is like a net. So according to einstein the more the mass of the ball is the more that cloth will curve because if we keep increasing the mass of the ball, the gravitational force will also increase, and eventually the space-time fabric curve will also increase.

Einstein stated that the closer you approach the strong gravitational force, the steeper the curve of the space-time fabric will get, and the steeper the curve becomes, the slower the time passes over there. So if you are near larger space objects like the sun, or other large planets like mars, or the black hole, which have greater gravitational force than the earth then time will move slowly for you.

Now that you understand this concept, you are ready to watch Interstellar again.

Going to the past using the wormhole

Eventually, at a certain saturation point, the cloth(space-time fabric) can no longer handle the balls(planetary objects) if the mass keeps increasing. Due to its gravitational force, it will end up tearing the fabric and planets will end up going on the other side of the fabric creating a wormhole. According to Einstein, we can travel to the past using this wormhole by traveling to another side of it.

Furthermore, it is a fact, time advances faster for a satellite that is far from the earth than one that is close to the earth. Therefore, Gravity also impacts time.

Stephen Hawking’s mysterious party

Stephen Hawking threw a party at the University of Cambridge but no one came because he did not invite anyone. The day after the party, he told everyone about it. So by any chance, if someone arrived at the party without any invitation that means that the person is a time traveler. He also considered the query, Is time travel possible?

Stephen Hawking proposed time travel may be possible, but we haven’t figured out how to do it.

Time travel short stories

Many people wonder how can we create a time machine to travel in the future or the past. We know the process, but lack the equipment to apply it in real life. We can’t travel at the speed of light because we have not attained that yet.

But, what if I tell you that there is a portal from where people slip into the past without applying all those scientific calculations?

Yes, I am talking about Bold Street, Liverpool, UK. Many people claim that they have traveled to the past when they visited here. Let’s take a look at some time travel real stories.

1. Mysterious Shop

A girl was searching for a Mothercare store to buy something for her elder sister’s kid. Then she saw a Mothercare store in front of her, but she noticed that as she was walking towards the store, the environment around her started to look different. People were wearing old-fashioned clothes and the street was filled with old vintage cars.

Hesitantly she walked inside the store and selected some things for the kid. She then proceeded to the counter with a credit card and passed it to the counterwoman to pay. The woman at the counter began to gaze at her with extremely confused eyes and then called the store manager. The manager came and saw the card and said, “sorry mam we don’t accept this kind of coupon.” The girl said that this is not a coupon its a credit card to pay. Then, as if they had never seen a credit card before, the store manager and the counterwoman began to stare at one another with great confusion. That girl didn’t have cash on her so she left everything there and went back to her home.

Did she go back in time?

She described the whole thing to her mother. Her mother was surprised to listen to her story and said that there is no Mothercare store on Bold street and that there was a Mothercare store a very long time back which already closed around 50-60 years ago! The girl was taken aback, and when they returned the following day to investigate, they discovered that there was no mother care store, despite the fact that a bank has been operating there for many years. Did that girl accidentally go through time?

Many people did not believe her at first but the girl’s ability to properly explain the circumstances and surroundings of a time when she hadn’t yet been born caused many people to reconsider whether or not she was telling the truth.

Then there is another case,

2. The Man Who Went Back in Time

A thief stole something from the shop and was being chased by a guard on Bold street. Then suddenly while running he felt that he is feeling very heavy and uneasy. He noticed that the things around him were acting weirdly like everything is moving slowly and again suddenly he found himself in a place full of people wearing old-fashioned clothes. Roads were full of the 1950s and 60s cars. Like very old-fashioned. He looked behind and found that the guard running behind him had disappeared. Then he noticed that the street was the same but the buildings were looking very old and different.

He became alarmed. He walked a few steps and then he grabbed a newspaper from a newspaper stall and you will not believe what happened next. In that newspaper, the date was 15 May 1967. He became extremely terrified. Then he checked his phone and there was no network on it too. At first, he thought it was a film set. But later he realized that it wasn’t a film set, but instead a bustling marketplace full of activity. In reality, he actually went back in time. He kept on walking and crossed a store.

Then he realized that suddenly his phone network came back after crossing that store. The most surprising thing was that on one side of that store, everything was modern, and on the other side, everything seemed to be old-fashioned, and only he was able to see that. Other people around there were not even aware of it.

Are there some other ways too to travel through time?

His interview was even published in the newspaper. He was interviewed many times to check if his answers differ in any of the interviews but his answers were the same. One needs to learn the answers when they are lying but the way he was answering so accurately seemed like he wasn’t lying. That man said the same thing in all three of his interview without any hesitation and even described the surrounding of that past time accurately. When cross-checked it was found that at exactly the place described by him, there was a newspaper stand in the 1950s and 60s, and a traffic light was also at the exact place.

Even the guard who was chasing him was called after that for an interview. He also said that the thief disappeared suddenly from a place where there was a weird kind of darkness. So weird that even the guard didn’t dare to enter that. What do you think about it?

Can we change the past? What If you kill your Ancestors in past after you time travel?

Some people wonder, what if they travel into their past and kill their ancestors? So if they kill their ancestors then, as a result, they had never been born. If they don’t exist then how are they traveling in the past?

A time travel paradox theory says that no matter what you try to do in past it will end up having the same result because nature adjusts itself. So if someone is killing their grandfather in past and then when they travel back to their original time then the past will change on its own and they will find that their grandfather never died even though they killed him in past. But again this is just a theory without any scientific explanation!

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Some individuals think that time travel and parallel universes have some sort of relationship.

Is time travel possible and if it is possible, Can it solve the mystery of teleportation?

Are there some other ways too to travel through time? and are there people who already achieved the power to travel through time? What is your opinion about it? Feel free to put your comments down below and let us know your opinion.

See you in the next article, till then stay safe!

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